Basement wall construction

ABSTRACT

A basement wall is formed by a series of vertical metal studs supported with their lower ends on a metal sill extending along the upper face of a concrete footing. A foam wall and a metal shear plate are mounted on the metal studs to form the wall&#39;s outer surface. A novel brick ledge is attached to the studs adjacent the upper edge of the foam wall.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This invention relates to building construction, and particularlyto the construction and formation of basement walls.

[0002] In my prior patents, U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,556 issued Jul. 16,1996, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,890,334 issued Apr. 6, 1999, both for“Basement Wall Construction”, I disclosed a basement wall formed of aseries of vertical metal studs supported on a metal sill on the upperface of a concrete footing. An insulating sheathing is mounted on themetal studs to form the wall outer surface.

[0003] In both patents a horizontal brick ledge formed of 16 gaugegalvanized metal was attached by self-tapping screws to the studs. Eachbrick ledge had a Z-shaped cross-section that was mounted on the upperend of the metal studs and the outer sheathing panels. The brick ledgehad an upper vertical edge that was attached to the studs, a horizontalbrick-supporting midsection that was mounted on the sheathing and alower vertical edge that was attached to the sheathing.

[0004] I have found that an improved brick ledge can be used for such abasement wall construction. The ledge has an upper vertical flange thatis attached to the studs. The lower half of the brick ledge is bent atan acute angle from the horizontal midsection, toward the foam panel,with a bottom flange lying in a plane parallel to the top edge of thefoam panel. This arrangement provides adequate support for a one-storybrick wall.

[0005] For a two-story brick wall, an insert similar to that of my priordisclosed brick ledge is mounted beneath the outer brick ledge.

[0006] Still further objects and advantages of this invention willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art to which the inventionpertains upon reference to the following detailed description.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] The description refers to the accompanying drawings in which likereference characters refer to like parts throughout the several viewsand in which:

[0008]FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken through a basementwall constructed accordingly to the invention;

[0009]FIG. 2 is a sectional plan view on a reduced scale through abasement having a wall construction according to the wall of FIG. 1;

[0010]FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view through a typical stud;

[0011]FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the footing;

[0012]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the inside of the wall;

[0013]FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a brick ledge suitable for atwo-story wall of brick;

[0014]FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a brick ledge useful for a one-storybrick wall;

[0015]FIG. 8 is a horizontal sectional view of a corner section of thewall; and

[0016]FIG. 9 shows a typical ship lapped seam between adjacent foampanels.

[0017] DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

[0018] This invention, as depicted in FIGS. 1 through 4, comprises abasement wall 10 that includes a concrete footing 12 located belowground surface 14 for supporting an upright skeleton frame 16. Achannel-shaped horizontal cap 18 is located on a series of equallyspaced upright metal studs or posts 20. The upper ends of studs 20 areattached to metal cap 18 which extends along and around the perimeter ofthe basement. Cap 18 is attached to the vertical studs by self-tappingscrews 68 or a clinching tool.

[0019]FIG. 2 shows a representative stud arrangement for a four-sidedbasement framework. A rigid thermal insulation foam wall 22 and a 24gauge steel shear panel 23 are attached to the outside face of uprightmetal studs 20 on foam sides to define the basement envelope. The shearpanel is attached to the studs with a combination of screws andpneumatically driven pins (not shown). The foam wall is glued to theshear panel with a silicone seal around the wall's edges.

[0020] Footing 12 partially supports a conventional poured concretefloor 24, as best seen in FIG. 4. Concrete floor 24 typically has athickness of about four inches.

[0021] Referring to FIG. 5, footing 12 has an inner edge contiguous witha hollow rigid drain tile 26, and an outer edge contiguous with an outerdrain tile 28. Each drain tile comprises a rigid plastic extrusionhaving a box-like cross-section. A partition 29 extends transverselyacross the midpoint of the tile, except at couplings (not shown) whichconnect the tile ends. Each drain tile has a series of slots 30 forreceiving water. Drain tiles 26 and 28 are used as forms for pouring theconcrete footing.

[0022] Either the inner drain tile 26 or the outer drain tile 28 isconnected to a sub-surface drainage device, not shown. The drainagedevice can be a sump in the basement floor or a storm drain leading awayfrom the building.

[0023] A metal sill 38 is seated along the upper face of concretefooting 12. Sill 38 is formed of 16 gauge galvanized metal coated withwaterproof sealant. As shown in FIG. 4, the sill has a channel-shapedcross-section comprising a web 40 seated on footing 12, an outer uprightflange 42, and an inner upright flange 44. Flange 44 has a heightgreater than the vertical thickness of concrete floor 24, forming a dampreventing water flow onto the surface of floor 24. Any water in thechannel is confined to the channel.

[0024] Sill 38 is made up of elongated channel sections having theirends abutted together to form an endless channel extending around theperimeter of the building wall. Typically, web 40 has a cross-sectionalwidth of about six inches, inner flange 44 has a cross-sectional heightof about six inches, and outer flange 42 has a cross-sectional height ofone to two inches. Web 40 is attached to footing 12 by nails 48 (onlyone shown).

[0025] A metal web stiffener 50 is seated on top of web 40 to reinforcethe bottom end of the studs which incur the greatest load when the soilhas been filled in around the basement wall.

[0026] This sill is also used as a form for pouring concrete floor 24.

[0027] Referring to FIG. 3, metal studs 20 each have a C-shapedcross-section, two inches deep by six inches wide, formed of 16 gaugegalvanized steel, as shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 3 shows a metal stud locatedat some point between the corners of the basement, whereas FIG. 8 showsa representative metal stud corner assembly comprising studs 20 a, 20 band 20 c.

[0028] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, each stud is dimensioned to fit snuglybetween flanges 42 and 44 of sill 38. The studs are spaced along thesill by a predetermined distance, e.g. 12 inches. The stud spacing isrelated to the loading requirements. The studs are attached to sill 38by self-tapping, non-corrosive, metal screws 46 or a clinching tool.

[0029] Referring to FIG. 4, anchor bolts 48 are embedded in the concretefooting at spaced points, e.g. on 12 inch centers, such that each anchorbolt extends down into concrete footing. The anchor bolt size depends onthe load applied by the back fill soil laid against the wall's outsidesurface, a minimum of 700 lb/ft shear value.

[0030] Sill 38 is sealed to the upper surface of footing 12 such thatgroundwater is directed into the slots in drain tiles 26 and 28. Theanchor bolts are required if the back fill soil is returned to theexcavation before the concrete floor is laid. If the concrete floor hasbeen laid before the excavation has been filled, then actuated nailfasteners are used since the floor will prevent the sill from shifting.

[0031] Each foam wall panel 22 is adhesively attached to the outer edgesurfaces of a shear panel 23 by a silicone sealant that functions alsoto form a seal between the foam panel and the shear panel. Each wallpanel 22 has a vertical height that depends on the height of the brickledge. If there is no brick ledge, the foam panel height is the fullheight of the back fill. Wall panels 22 have a thickness of 2⅛ inches.

[0032] Each wall panel 22 is preferably formed of a closed cell rigidfoam material that is sold under the mark PERIMATE available from DowCorporation and made for sub-surface applications.

[0033] The relatively light panels 22 are adhesively attached on shearpanel 23 with a minimum amount of mechanical fastening. For shipping,self-tapping screws 46 with washers 54 are placed approximately 12inches vertically from the bottom of wall panel and sealed with silicone58.

[0034] Panels 22 have their edges shiplapped together to form acontinuous inner panel layer around the entire perimeter of thebasement. A typical lap is illustrated in FIG. 9. During service, foampanels 22 provide a continuous barrier and drainage preventinggroundwater from flowing into the basement interior space.

[0035] Referring to FIG. 4, sill 38 is sealed to the upper surface offooting 12 such that groundwater is directed through the gravel intodrain tiles 26 and 28.

[0036] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, a plurality of horizontal bridgingmembers 72 are mounted between each pair of studs to prevent relativemotion between the two studs. This structure is disclosed in my U.S.Pat. No. 6,164,028 issued Dec. 26, 2000, for “Reinforced Steel StudStructure” and is incorporated herein by reference.

[0037] A horizontal brick ledge 72 formed of a 16 gauge, galvanizedmetal is attached by self-tapping screws (not shown) to the studsdirectly above foam wall 22, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 6.

[0038] A {fraction (1/2)} inch thick upper foam wall 74 is adhesivelyattached to the outside face of the shear panel directly above foam wall22 and extends from the upper edge of foam wall panel 22 up to the outerflange of cap 18. Wall 74 is closely adjacent stacked bricks 76supported on brick ledge 72 at the upper end of foam wall 22. Wall 74 isavailable from the Dow Corporation under the trademark “Thermax.”

[0039] Elongated cooperating one-piece, 16 gauge outer brick ledgemember 78 and an inner brick ledge member 80 form brick ledge (72). Thearrangement of FIG. 6 is suited for a two-story wall of bricks. Outerbrick ledge member 78 has a vertical flange 82 that is attached bythreaded fasteners 84 to studs 20. Brick ledge member 78 has ahorizontal midsection 86. A wall of stacked bricks is seated onhorizontal midsection 86. The width of horizontal portion of brick ledgemember 78 is about double the thickness of foam wall 22. Brick ledgemember 78 has a lower, vertical flange 88 fastened by threaded fasteners90 to the vertical face of inner brick ledge member 80.

[0040] Midsection 86 of the brick ledge is attached to lower flange 88by an inclined wall 92 disposed at a 45° angle with respect to flange88.

[0041] Inner brick ledge member 80 is mounted inside the outer brickledge member and has an upper vertical flange 94, a horizontalmidsection 96 and a vertical lower flange 98. Upper flange 94 isattached to the stud 22 by fasteners 84. Lower flange 98 is attached toouter brick ledge vertical flange by fastener 90. The entire brick ledgeis treated with a protective coating of silicone.

[0042] Referring to FIG. 7, where the brick ledge is to support only aone-story brick wall, inner brick ledge member 80 is eliminated.Horizontal midsection 86 of the brick ledge is considerably wider thanthe thickness of wall 22 in order to accommodate the width of the bricksin the brick wall. However, the particular geometry of brick ledgemember 86 is such that it and the load of the brickwall biases foam wall22 against studs 20 and the shear panel. The shear panel prevents“racking” of the foam wall and also protects the inside face of foamwall 22 from damage. The studs are attached to the shear wall byfasteners 21, as shown in FIG. 3.

[0043] Referring to FIG. 8, a typical corner of the wall structure isassembled by attaching the side surface of stud 20 a to the end of anadjacent stud 20 b to form a right angle corner. Stud 28 is then sealedby a silicone seal at points 100, 102 and 104 to the two shear panels.The web of stud 20 c is attached as, illustrated in FIG. 8, by fastenermeans 108 to the sidewall of stud 20 a. The sidewall of stud 20 c issealed by a silicone seal at location 104 to the shear panel. The web ofstud 20 b is attached by fasteners 110 to web 106 of flange 20 c. Theexterior joints of the wall and corners are sealed after the foam panelsare mounted in place such as at location 109.

[0044] The principal advantages of the illustrated wall construction areits high thermal insulation value, and its excellent leakage resistance.The use of metal studs is advantageous because the metal resistsrotting, while providing good vertical load-carrying capability.

Having described my invention, I claim:
 1. A below-ground basementstructure, comprising: a concrete footing disposed a substantialdistance below ground level, said footing having an inner edge and anouter edge; a basement floor extending from the inner edge of saidfooting; an upright skeleton frame supported on said footing, saidskeleton frame comprising a lower sill resting on said footing, pluralupright metal studs extending upwardly from said sill at regularlyspaced points therealong, and an upper cap spanning said metal studs anappreciable distance above said sill; each of said metal studs having anouter flat shear panel mounting surface, and upper ends; a metal shearpanel mounted on said shear panel mounting surface, and attached to thesill and the cap; a plurality of flat rigid first foam panels securedflatwise to the shear panel; said first foam panels having a firstthickness, vertical side edges shiplapped together to form an outerwall, and an outer face; first means for securing said first foam panelsto said shear panel; said first foam panels having a height less thanthe height of said studs whereby the upper edge of the first foam panelsis disposed in a spaced relationship below the upper ends of the studs;a second foam panel secured to said shear panel and extending from theupper edge of the first foam panels to the upper ends of the wall andthe shear panel and having a thickness less than the thickness of thefirst foam panels; an elongated brick ledge having an upper flangefastened to the studs through the shear panel adjacent the upper edge ofthe first foam panels, the brick ledge having a horizontal midsectionhaving a width greater than the thickness of the first foam panels andgreater than the thickness of a brick wall; the brick ledge having aninclined section and a lower flange, the inclined section beingconnected to both the outer edge of the brick ledge midsection, and thelower flange being attached to an outer face of the shear panel; andwhereby the weight of a brick wall on the brick ledge biases the firstfoam panels toward said studs.
 2. A basement structure as defined inclaim 1, including an inner brick ledge having an upper flange disposedin a face-to-face relationship with the upper flange of the firstmentioned brick ledge and fastened to said studs, said inner brick ledgehaving a lower flange disposed in a face-to-face relationship with thelower flange of the first mentioned brick ledge and attached thereto,and a horizontal midsection in a face-to-face relationship with themidsection of the first mentioned brick ledge adjacent the top edge ofthe first foam panels.
 3. A basement structure as defined in claim 2, inwhich the lower flange of the inner brick ledge is disposed at rightangles to the midsection thereof.
 4. A basement structure as defined inclaim 2, in which the upper flange of the inner brick ledge is disposedat a right angle with respect to the midsection thereof.
 5. A brickledge for a wall having a vertical upper planar structure and a verticallower planar structure, spaced from the plane of the upper planarstructure but parallel to the upper planar structure, said brick ledgecomprising: a unitary sheet metal body having an upper flange suited forattached to an upper planar structure, a lower flange suited forattachment to lower planar structure, a planar midsection disposed at aright angle to the upper flange, and an inclined wall having an upperedge attached to the planar midsection, and a lower flange attachable tothe lower planar structure.
 6. A brick ledge as defined in claim 5, inwhich the inclined wall is disposed at a 45° angle to both themidsection and the lower flange of the brick ledge.
 7. A brick ledge asdefined in claim 7, including an inner sheet metal member having anupper flange in a face-to-face relationship to the upper flange of thefirst mentioned brick ledge, a lower flange in a face-to-face to thelower flange of the first mentioned brick ledge, and a midsection havingan upper section forming a right angle to both the upper flange thereofand the lower flange thereof, and connected to both the upper and lowerflanges thereof.